Cupid's Arrow
by Cushira
Summary: It's Valentine's Day, and all of the Shinigami in SoulSociety are looking for the Mystery Cupid that stirs up trouble in the Living World every year. But when Rukia finds him, he proposes a deal that she can't refuse... IchiRuki, Ichigo x Rukia Oneshot.


**Author's Note:** I cannot believe that my account got hacked!!!!!!!!!!! UGH!!!!!! Goodbye, 10-plus hours of typing and idea-thinking:(

I really don't want to write my stories up again, so I'll just start new ones. Oh well – one must move on.

Here's a gift to you all, as a late Valentine's present. Sorry for the stories, guys, but I can't continue them – I lost everything. Hope you enjoy this one...:D

PS: Don't accept download attachments from your reviewers – it's probably a keylogger, and you'll probably get hacked, too. -.-"

**Cupid's Arrow**

**Disclaimer:** Bleach plus Polaroid cameras equals not mine. However, readers plus fanfiction equals reviews, and reviews equal love from awesome authoress. :D

Cupid is a mischievous creature known by many names in different countries. But in truth, he's only a shinigami who figured out how to make people love other people with a simple elixir. He's usually busy selling these potions off through the Shinigami Black Market, but on Valentine's Day, he's busy applying the elixir onto arrows and shooting people, animals and shinigamis in the living world with them. Whoever gets hit with these arrows fall in love with the first person they see, regardless of gender or species. And so, shinigami are usually busy trying to hunt down the "criminal" responsible for this "crime".

Kuchiki Rukia wasn't an exception, as she was a shinigami and an honorable one at that. Ichigo had also been called for the deed, and the reward for catching the "criminal" only grew greater every year. This year, it was a whole year's supply of Chappy the Bunny Soul Candy, which was a prize sought out by every female shinigami in all of Soul-Society and beyond. Rukia wasn't an exception, so she was especially crazy today.

"Come on, Ichigo, you're slowing me down!" she yelled, as she skipped over the rooftops effortlessly, peering at the streets below for any sign of the mystery Cupid. Ichigo only groaned and chased after her, muttering something under his breath about a 'crazy bunny-loving wench'.

Sighing, Rukia stopped running and looked around for any signs of the "criminal". Ichigo only sighed as he collapsed on the roof that he was standing on, breathing heavily and closing his eyes. She only rolled her eyes at her partner and scanned for any strange things. As she turned her head, she caught the glimpse of a pink-and-white blur. Frowning, she tiptoed quietly off the roof and followed after it. Ichigo took no notice, and continued to rest on the roof.

Rukia ran quietly, looking for any trace of the thing that she had seen. Sure enough, she saw a cat nuzzling a dog in an alley and a man running after another man, declaring his undying love for him. She scrunched her nose in disgust as she continued to scan the streets for any trace of the white-and-pink blur that she had seen before.

She passed another alleyway, and something white caught her eye. Turning quickly, she tiptoed quietly towards the figure.

"Hmm... Which arrow should I use now...?" the white-clad person muttered to himself, looking through his pink quiver. "The red one has a pretty color--"

He was cut off in mid-sentence, when Rukia wrapped her arm around the his neck securely. The person's eyes widened, his mask hanging crookedly off of his face.

"Surrender, and I won't have to hurt you." Rukia said in a voice that she usually reserved for Ichigo when he refused to buy her another Chappy the Bunny doll to add to her collection. The person, however, let out a laugh as he kicked her in the chest and shunpo-ed away from her in one motion. Glaring, Rukia pulled out her zanpaktou as she chased after the white-clad man.

Rukia dashed through the streets, catching up to the man with ease. In one fluid motion, she tackled him down and pinned him to the ground as she held up the white blade of her sword up to the person's neck.

"Maybe I wasn't clear. I said surrender, not run away." she said in a cold voice, pushing her sword a little closer to his neck.

"All right, all right, I surrender!" he grumbled, holding up his hands. Cautiously, Rukia picked him up off the ground, never taking the sword away from his neck. She fished out a neck-handcuff that each shinigami was given for the mission, and clasped it on his neck. Red cords came out from it, securing his hands behind his back. She looked at the necklace, and winced inwardly – she remembered when she had been imprisoned with the same device, not too long ago.

"Let's go," she said coldly, returning her zanpaktou into its sheath. She tugged at him roughly with one of the cords from the neck-handcuff, impatient and annoyed that he had managed to land a hit on her.

"Hey, wait a second... You're not actually going to turn me in, are you?" he said, his voice muffled because of the mask.

Rukia rolled her eyes and sighed. "Why else would I waste a day looking for someone like you? Come on, let's go." However, the person resisted a little.

"Hey... If this is about the Soul-Candy Chappy thing, I'll give you a lifetime supply! And as a bonus, I'll let you play 'Cupid's Arrow' for free!" the captive said, pleading with his captor.

A period of silence ensued. The man began to grow nervous, awaiting her answer.

"...What's the catch?" Rukia finally said, her sapphire eyes demanding the truth.

"You have to let me go, and never participate in the annual Cupid-Catching Competition ever again."

A small smirk made her way to her face. Finally, she didn't have to worry about haggling for prices with Urahara for her favorite Soul-Candy! And this game that he had proposed didn't sound too boring, either...

"Okay," she said. "So how do I play your little game?"

The Cupid-man smirked. "I knew you'd see it my way."

- - -

"See, I'll blindfold you and give you one of the arrows from my quiver," explained the Cupid-man. "Then, I'll take you to a random place in this town, and I'll spin you. Then you throw the arrow. Now remember, the effects of the arrow are temporary, and will last until sunset, at the latest..."

Rukia frowned. "How is this fun? It sounds idiotic to me..."

The Cupid-man sighed. "You'll see when we get there. Now here, put this on." He held out a pink cloth.

Reluctantly, she took the cloth and wrapped it around her eyes. Suspicion arose within her heart, but she dismissed it quickly. What was the worst thing that could happen?

The Cupid-man picked her up and dashed into the town, his smirk growing wider and wider.

- - -

He finally stopped and set her onto the ground.

"Are we here yet?" Rukia said, creasing her brows. "You're moving too slow, and I'm getting bored..."

The Cupid-man only handed her an arrow, and began to spin her around. She stumbled a bit, but managed to maintain her balance and kept a firm grip on the arrow. As soon as he stopped spinning her, she wobbled a bit and threw the arrow. As she threw the arrow, she pulled off her blindfold...only to drop it in surprise.

The person who she had hit was Ichigo.

"Er...Cupid-man?" she said hesitantly, but got no response. She looked around, but only saw a piece of paper that read, "You'll get 100 Chappy Soul Candies every week, at your house in Sereitei". Sighing in frustration, she threw the note aside and cautiously approached Ichigo's slumbering form.

"Uh... Ichigo?" she said, gently pulling out the arrow that landed in his neck. "Are you okay?"

Ichigo's eyes opened slowly, then widened. His normal scowl was replaced by a smile, as he sat up and looked at her lovingly.

"I've never been better, because you're here with me."

"...Um... What?" she said, her eyes widening. "Uh... are you sure you're okay, Ichigo?" she said, pressing her hand on his head. He let out a sigh of happiness, and Rukia withdrew her hand as if his forehead was on fire.

"No, don't do that. I want you to be with me forever." he said, grabbing her hand and entwining his fingers with hers.

"H-huh...?" she said, stupefied. A blush crept on her cheeks, as she tried to pry her hand from his grip. "Stop it, Ichigo!"

A hurt expression made its way to his face. "Why, you don't like me? You dislike me? You hate me?"

"N-no! It's just that---"

"Okay, then!" And before she could respond, he smiled and picked her up, bridal-style, and jumped across the rooftops.

They returned to Urahara's store, and into their bodies (or in Rukia's case, her gigai). Curiously, Rukia approached Ichigo as he stuffed the green pill down the Kon plushie's throat.

"Okay, what's goin--" she began to ask, but was cut off by Ichigo.

"Will you go on a date with me? After all, it _is_ Valentine's Day, and we have no more work to do today."

Rukia sighed. "Yeah, okay, fine. Whatever. But a date? Isn't it more like an outing?"

"Call it what you'd like, but I'll consider it a date." Ichigo said, smiling as he walked away. "I'll meet you in Karakura Town Square in thirty minutes, then."

Rukia looked at him strangely. "Why are you going to your house? It's not like you have to change or anything... I mean, you clothes aren't even ripped or bloody...or both!"

Ichigo gave her a "duh" look. "I have to be well-dressed for my date, after all. You should get ready, too." With a wink, he disappeared around the corner, the Kon plushie in hand.

Rukia sighed again, blowing her bang out of her face. "I guess I should get ready, then..."

"So... A date with Kurosaki-kun? That's wonderful! Here, try this on!" Orihime squealed, handing her a black miniskirt, a pinkish-red halter top, a white denim jacket, fishnet stockings, and black boots that reached up to her knees.

"Um... Are you sure that these things will look good on me?" she asked hesitantly, holding up a boot.

"Don't worry! I grew out of those ages ago, so they should be just your size."

Rukia chuckled nervously as she disappeared into Orihime's bathroom, only to see Ishida's face staring back at her. She then noticed just how many pictures of Ishida that she had seen in Orihime's house. Wondering if the girl was involved with the Quincy, she got dressed quickly. After a few minutes, she stepped out and turned a little, silently asking Orihime for her opinion.

"You look awesome! They look perfect on you... Actually, you can keep them. I can't wear them anymore, and you look a lot better in them, anyway!"

Rukia smiled. "Really? Thanks!" She waved goodbye to her friend, as she headed toward the door. But Orihime was faster, surprisingly.

"Oh no, you don't... You still need your hair and face done..." she said, holding up a brush and a tube of mascara as her eyes glinted evilly.

Ten hassling minutes later, Orihime french-braided Rukia's hair into two pigtails. She also applied some blush, a little eyeliner, a bit of mascara, and some lip gloss. Proudly, she brought Rukia a mirror to show her what she had done. Rukia looked at the glass hesitantly – and gasped. Was that really her?

She thanked Orihime at least ten times before she left.

As the door closed, Orihime smiled.

"Good luck, Rukia!"

- - -

Surprisingly, Ichigo was already there when she arrived – and she was five minutes early. He had worn a black button-up shirt with jeans – simple, yet oh-so attractive.

He saw her approaching, and waved at her. She waved back weakly as he ran up to her and they began to walk around together.

Ichigo rambled on about pointless things, and Rukia only nodded, smiling politely. He was so out-of-character... What had that arrow done to him? Oh yeah, make him fall in love with her... Just what had she gotten herself into?

"What do you want to do?" Ichigo asked as he wrapped his arm around her small shoulders, interrupting her train of thoughts.

"Um... I don't know..." she said, trying to ease out of his embrace. But he only clutched her tighter, kissing the top of her head gently. Blushing, she broke free from his embrace and looked away. He only laughed as he held her hand, entwining his fingers with hers.

"Come on, I know where to go." Shielding her eyes with a white handkerchief, he ran in the streets of Karakura, never letting go of Rukia's hand.

She groaned, as she allowed herself to be dragged by the taller boy.

- - -

Meanwhile, Cupid-man was watching Rukia the whole time. He laughed as he saw her blush again and again, due to Ichigo hugging her or holding her hand.

"This is SO much better than shooting random people with my arrows..." he said, chuckling.

Urahara emerged from the bush behind him, and tapped his shoulder. "Perhaps you'd like to utilize this?" he said, as he held out a Polaroid camera.

A smirk made its way onto the Cupid-man's face as he took the camera. "My my, Urahara, you never change...Such a genius."

The two men laughed as they took pictures of the poor Kuchiki girl as she suffered from humiliation and embarrassment from the Kurosaki boy's romantic antics.

- - -

Ichigo took the handkerchief off from her eyes gently, and smiled. "Gorgeous, huh?" he said, showing her the magnificent view. Rukia could only gape at the scenery in front of her, awed.

He had brought her to a lookout point in Karakura, a place that showed the whole town in all of its glory. With the sun setting and setting off an array of beautiful hues in the sky, it was all the more enchanting.

"Wow...This is so...amazing..." she said, sighing out in happiness.

"Yeah... It is..." he replied, but it wasn't the scenery that he was looking at. "Um... Look, Rukia, I have to tell you something... That's why I brought you out here."

Rukia turned towards him, tilting her head slightly. "What is it?" she said calmly. However, her heart was pounding. The day had been so wonderful, and she couldn't deny the fact that she had no feelings toward the orange-haired boy. He had always been there for her, and he had grown onto her. She knew deep inside that her fondness wasn't only purely friendship anymore – it was beginning to turn into love. She couldn't help but wonder if Ichigo felt the same way, before he had been shot by the arrow.

"Uh...hehe..." he laughed awkwardly, running his fingers through his hair. "This is sort of hard to say... But... Rukia..." he said, his chocolate orbs focusing onto her aquamarine ones, "I...love you."

Rukia's eyes widened. She knew the effects of the arrow, but she hadn't expected him to actually come out and say it. "W-what...? " she croaked. "S-say that again...?"

"I love you. I've love you for a while, but I didn't ever say anything, because...Well, I guess I was being stupid. But I've always loved you, all of you. I love your eyes, I love your personality...Hell, I even love your obsession for bunny-themed stuff!" he said, smiling awkwardly. "You don't have to accept my love... I just wanted to tell you how I feel."

Rukia's eyes closed, and she tried to process that thought. He loved her...? He loved her... He loved her... "He loves me...?" she murmured under her breath. "Impossible..." But a smile made its way to her face. He loved her.

"Uh... Rukia?" Ichigo said, bringing her back to reality. She fluttered her eyes open and was about to respond to his confession, when she saw his expression – clueless. He didn't know what was happening. He didn't know what he had done to her. He didn't know what he had said to her. Helplessly, she looked out into the horizon – the sun had already set.

Forcing back her tears, she got up slowly. "You don't remember what happened today, do you?"

Ichigo frowned, for the first time that day. "Rukia, what are you talking about? Of--"

Rukia shook her head, getting up slowly. "I thought that you-- that we--- UGH!!" she screamed, as she ran away. Tears flooded her eyes and trickled down her face as she ran down from the lookout point – she should've known and controlled her feelings better... Now, she was paying the price for being foolish.

"RUKIA!!!" Ichigo yelled, running after her. "WAIT!!!" She only ran faster, her boots sinking into the dirt. She ran blindly until she tripped over a tree root and tumbled to the ground, sobbing.

Ichigo ran up to her, his face grief-stricken. "Rukia... I--"

"NO! STOP!!" she screamed. "I know that you don't remember... I know that I was being foolish... SO don't remind me... Please..." she sobbed into her hands, smearing her face with dirt.

Ichigo closed his eyes, knelt down, and picked her up off the floor. He sat her in his lap, and kissed the top of head gently.

"I know... And I remember. The truth is, the arrow that the Cupid guy gave you has no effect whatsoever."

Rukia's eyes widened. "W-what? What are you--"

Ichigo laughed nervously, running his hand through his hair. "The truth is, I hired him to do what he did, so that it'd be easier for me to tell you that I love you. I couldn't tell you out of nowhere... That's just be really weird, now wouldn't it? And so far, this has been the best of my life since my mother passed away."

A moment of silence passed between them, and Ichigo decided to break the silence after a while. "Uh... Rukia?"

Her lip quivered, and tears streamed down her face. "Y-you i-i-idiot!!" she yelled, hugging him. "It doesn't matter!" However, her only response from him was a laugh as he returned her embrace.

He pulled away from her, and she looked at him. "What--"

"Shush." he said simply, wiping the dirt away from her face. "See, you look beautiful." His eyes met hers, and his thumb brushed over her lips as his other hand held her face.

Slowly, he closed his eyes as he leaned closer toward her. "I love you..." he murmured, as his lips met hers. He held her closer, tightening his embrace. Rukia, in turn, wrapped her arms around his neck and tangled her fingers within his hair.

He brushed her locks gently with his fingers and pushed her head closer to his. They were totally consumed with each other, seeing and thinking about nothing other than the person in front of them. After a while, they broke it off, due to the lack of breath.

"Heh..." Rukia said, sighing as she leaned into his chest, closing her eyes. "Wow... what a day..."

"Yeah..." Ichigo replied, resting his chin on her head. Then, he let out a laugh.

"What?" she said, looking up at him.

"I wonder how you're going to repay for all this on White Day."

- - -

Urahara and Cupid-man laughed maniacally as they looked at all of the pictures that they had taken that day. They even labeled them – Ichigo holds Rukia's Hand, Part II; Ichigo waits for Rukia I, etc.

"We're going to make a fortune with these... Or at the least, get some amusement blackmailing them with these photos."

"They'd probably do well in the Shinigami Black Market... As well as my elixirs, even!"

They laughed once again, labeling more pictures and discussing their plans for blackmailing the happy couple.

- - -

**Author's Note (again):** I'm thinking of doing a part two to this oneshot, but I'm not sure. Leave reviews telling me what you think:)


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